Simple Ways to Protect your boat, Wash your Boat

Keeping your boat clean carries with it a variety of benefits and serves to not only enhance the visual appearance of your boat but extend it's life as well. As obvious as this may seem, people tend to forget to wash their boat after they’ve spent a day on the water. This is vitally important, especially if you’ve been out on salt water. The salt can build up and corrode fasteners, metal and just about everything else. Over prolonged exposure to salt, even your boat coatings can be adversely affected. Basically, if you leave your boat unwashed after a day in salt water, you are asking for trouble. You will undoubtedly be changing out your parts more often and applying coatings more frequently than before. The simple solution is to just wash your boat each time you take it out. Now, you don’t just give your boat a quick rinse as that’s not really going to achieve much. To maintain a salt-free vessel, use a boat brush, especially one with soft bristles, and gently wash the boat from top to bottom. A quick and dirty method is to use a pressure washer at a distance and with a widespread tip, but overall, we don't recommend this as it can damage coatings and other surfaces. So, now that you're washing your boat with the soft bristled brush mentioned above, you'll want to use a soap that is compatible with the sealant or finish you’ve put on your boat. The last thing you want is to use a soap that damages, weakens, or removes the sealant you've applied to your boat. How do you know if the soap is safe to use with your sealant? Usually, you can find that information on the packaging of the sealant you have used or their website. If you don’t’ have access to marine grade soap, you can use car soap or even laundry soap if you have nothing else. Just be careful, make sure the soap you’re using won’t have a lasting effect on your boat. A good final step is to give your boat a thorough rinse at the end making sure to wash away any residual soap that may be left behind. After you have given your boat a deep, thorough rinse, angle the nose of the boat higher than the transom and left the extra water drain out. If you are planning to store your boat, make sure that the boat is fully dry first to help prevent any damage or mold growth from the moisture.

Things to remember:

• Salt left on the boat will cause corrosion
• Use a soft bristle brush
• Use soap compatible with your sealant
• Dry your boat before storage

New panels go along way in improving your boat's appearance:

Over time, panels will fade and give an overall appearance of age. the easiest solution to this is to simply replace your panel with a new panel blank. These panel blanks are made from 5052 H32 marine grade aluminum or high-quality Lexan depending on the style you choose. All the panel blanks are designed to be a perfect fit with either A-frame breakers, rocker switches, or both. These panels are as plug-and-play as you can get when it comes to new panels. No need to cut holes or align anything as we have done all the hard work for you. All you need to decide is whether you want A-Frame breaker panel blanks, Contura switch panel blanks, or Contura switch and breaker panel blanks. This way, you get what you want, when you need it.

Replacing your switch covers can help improve the appearance of your boat:

Another easy way to improve the appearance of your boat is to replace the switch covers. Over time, these become faded and generally unappealing. With nearly four thousand possible options, we have the switches you are looking for. Replacing your switch covers is a simple task. To remove the old switch covers, it is recommended that you use this tool. Using a screwdriver or similar instrument may damage the rocker switch itself and cause you more money and headache. Once you have the old switch off, simply align the new switch and snap it into place. The best part is that we print our switch covers using a UV resistant ink meaning that down the road your switch cover will still look just as fresh as when they first went on. Why wait? Pick out your new style here.